Meala moves to full commercial production at two sites in Germany and France
Key messages
- Meala enters full-scale production of its texturizing protein.
- This pea protein replicates the multifunctional performance of eggs and hydrocolloids in a variety of food formulations.
- The solution offers 30–40% cost savings across these bakery applications while reducing egg dependency and supporting a more stable supply chain.
- Visitors at Fi Europe are invited to taste egg-free baked delicacies.
Building on its commercial success, Meala FoodTech, Ltd., announces accelerated industrial production of its texturizing pea proteins. This puts the company on track to accommodate the steady influx of commercial demand from food manufacturers. Meala has more than tripled its manufacturing capacity from production sites in France and Germany, generating enough texturizing pea proteins to replace 1,400 tons of eggs in 2027, ensuring a resilient supply channel.
On the shelf
With Meala’s pea-based texturizers already appearing on retail shelves within branded products, Meala’s solution is proving to be a key ingredient for food manufacturers seeking to reduce egg dependency or replace conventional texture additives such as hydrocolloids. The company is working with dozens of food companies to apply the ingredients across multiple food categories.
“Texture is central to the eating experience—it creates the bite, juiciness, and mouthfeel that make a food memorable and worth sharing,” explains Hadar Ekhoiz-Razmovich, CEO and co-founder of Meala. “Manufacturers seek ingredients that deliver this experience alongside reliable performance, competitive costs, and a stable supply chain. Meala’s texturizing pea protein brings these benefits together, replacing eggs or hydrocolloids while supporting a shorter, more recognizable ingredient list. Our expanded manufacturing capacity enables us to support customers’ new product launches and reach more applications and markets. The first plant-based meat alternatives featuring Meala’s protein have already been successfully launched by customers and are now commercially available across Europe.”
The pea protein that redefines texture
Meala’s texturizing pea protein is designed to simplify formulations while enhancing texture, nutritional value, and overall sensory performance. It allows a shorter ingredient list, higher protein content, and no change to the product’s sensory attributes. Meala has achieved self-affirmed GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) status for its pea protein ingredient for use in US food applications, following review by an independent panel of qualified experts.
Meala’s innovative pea-based ingredients are commercially available through established industry partners: DSM-Firmenich, AG, markets Vertis™ PB Pea, designed for savory applications. LASENOR VP-100 is marketed through bakery solutions specialist Lasenor Emul, S.L., as an egg replacement solution for bakery products.
The ingredient appears on food labels simply as “pea protein,” supporting a clean label, allergen free as well as nutritional value.
Lower formulation costs
Manufacturers are facing growing pressure to simplify labels, improve nutrition, and manage ingredient costs without compromise of product enjoyment. This is against a backdrop of egg supply disruptions and geographically fragmented ingredient supply chains, all of which create uncertainty. This is why food companies are placing greater emphasis on reliable sourcing and predictable costs to improve margins.
Ekhoiz-Razmovich highlights the cost-saving benefits of Meala’s multifunctional texturizing proteins, offering food manufacturers a more stable and cost-effective alternative amid growing supply chain disruptions and volatile ingredient prices. These pressures are affecting a broader range of food ingredients, with market volatility expected to intensify. By leveraging a reliable supply of plant-based raw materials, Meala enables manufacturers to reduce exposure to price fluctuations, diversify sourcing strategies, and achieve greater cost predictability across multiple bakery products.
In an assessed sponge cake formulation, Meala demonstrated a potential reduction in formulation cost of greater than 40% compared with an egg-based reference. Results demonstrated that the ingredient helps reduce refrigeration logistics of liquid eggs, potentially simplifying storage, transportation, and inventory management.
“For innovation to translate into commercial adoption, it needs to work within manufacturers’ recipes, processes, and economics,” says Dr. Tali Feldman Sivan, PhD, Meala’s co-Founder and CBO. “In meat alternatives, our texturizing protein provides binding and structure while replacing conventional texture additives. In bakery applications, it typically accounts for just a few percentages of the formulation, replacing egg functionality and enabling meaningful cost-in-use savings.”
According to a life cycle assessment analysis (LCA) conducted by Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, Leeuwarden, Netherlands, Meala’s pea-based protein has a 63% lower carbon footprint and a 96% lower water footprint per kilogram of protein, as compared to egg powder.
Clean label meets commercial sense
“The future of food formulation lies in making each ingredient deliver more,” explains Feldman Sivan. “But changing even one ingredient can affect texture, stability, and processing behavior. Meala gives formulators a simpler starting point: one ingredient that delivers multiple texturizing functions, reducing the need to rebuild recipes around complex combinations of substitutes. We help our customers meet sensory, processing, and cost requirements together, with a focus on consistent performance from lab and pilot trials to commercial products.”
Visit us at Fi Europe in Frankfurt, November 17-19, booth #51SU53 to taste the innovation
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